TULSA, Okla. – Wichita State took on conference foe Tulsa, Monday evening in a thriller at the Case Tennis Center. The Shockers held off a late Golden Hurricane rally for their second-straight win and their first victory in their inaugural season of the American Athletic Conference.
DOUBLES
The Shockers and Golden Hurricane split matches in the first and second flights.
Murkel Dellien and
Marius Frosa added another one to the win column, knocking off Josh Goodger and Jarod Hing (6-3). Tulsa got one back in the second flight, where Lucca Baptista and Majed Kilani took down the red-hot Shocker duo of
Miroslav Herzan and
Andrea Caligiana (6-2). It was havoc in flight three, where
Haru Inoue and
Eddie Stoica took on Louis Corker and Mitchell Pritchard. After trading points, the match went to a tiebreaker. In the tiebreaker, it was a close one; where both teams pushed it tow six apiece. The Shockers grabbed two in a row to win the game, (7-6(6) and the set to give the black and yellow the doubles point.
SINGLES
Tulsa got on the scoreboard with a straight-set victory in the first flight. No. 108 Kilani knocked off Frosa in (6-1, 6-1). Junior
Andrea Caligiana recorded his second victory in as many days, taking down Louis Corker in the sixth flight to give the lead back to Wichita State. Stoica extended the Shocker lead over the Golden Hurricane to 3-1, with a victory in the fifth flight. Stoica won in straight sets over Pritchard (6-3, 6-4).
'Havoc in the Heartland' played up to the hype in the final three games of the evening. After dropping the first set, Inoue won set two (6-3) and had No. 66 Goodger on the ropes in set three, before Goodger battled back and forced a tiebreaker. The freshman for Tulsa ran away in the tiebreaker to win the set and the game. Things looked up in the fifth flight for the Shockers, as Herzan forced a third set against Baptista. Baptista battled from behind and pushed Herzan to the edge, winning a three-setter (7-5, 5-7, 7-5) to tie the match at three.
It all came down to Dellien in the third flight, where he battled with Hing in a match for the ages. Hing showed resiliency for the Golden Hurricane. After losing the first set (6-4), Hing saved match point in the second set to force a tiebreaker, where he won (8-6). Dellien came up clutch in the third set, winning handily (6-3) to clinch the match for the Shockers.
The match marks the 21st victory over the Golden Hurricane in 37 meetings. WSU leads the overall series 21-16. The Shockers improve to 3-5 on the season, and have won two-in-a row.
Up Next: The Shockers head to Albuquerque, N.M. for the Pacific Invite Mar. 2-4. The Shockers look to repeat as Invite champions after winning it all a season ago in Stockton, Calif.
Wichita State 4, Tulsa 3
Singles competition
1. #108 Majed Kilani (TU) def.
Marius Frosa (WSU) 6-1, 6-1
2. #66 Joshua Goodger (TU) def.
Haru Inoue (WSU) 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7-2)
3.
Murkel Dellien (WSU) def. Jarod Hing (TU) 6-4, 6-7 (6-8), 6-3
4. Lucca Baptista (TU) def.
Miroslav Herzan (WSU) 7-5, 5-7, 7-5
5.
Eddie Stoica (WSU) def. Mitchell Pritchard (TU) 6-3, 6-4
6.
Andrea Caligiana (WSU) def. Louis Corker (TU) 7-5, 6-4
Doubles competition
1.
Murkel Dellien/
Marius Frosa (WSU) def. Joshua Goodger/Jarod Hing (TU) 6-3
2. Majed Kilani/Lucca Baptista (TU) def.
Andrea Caligiana/
Miroslav Herzan (WSU) 6-2
3.
Eddie Stoica/
Haru Inoue (WSU) def. Louis Corker/Mitchell Pritchard (TU) 7-6 (8-6)
Match Notes:
Wichita State 3-5
Tulsa 6-8
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (1,6,5,2,4,3)
Official: Bob Holland T-3:08 A-103
